Chapter 11.—A Difficulty, How We are Justified in the Blood of the Son of God.

15. But what is meant by “justified in His blood?” What power is there in this blood, I beseech you, that they who believe should be justified in it? And what is meant by “being reconciled by the death of His Son?” Was it indeed so, that when God the Father was wroth with us, He saw the death of His Son for us, and was appeased towards us? Was then His Son already so far appeased towards us, that He even deigned to die for us; while the Father was still so far wroth, that except His Son died for us, He would not be appeased? And what, then, is that which the same teacher of the Gentiles himself says in another place: “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all; how has He not with Him also freely given us all things?”803    Rom. viii. 31, 32 Pray, unless the Father had been already appeased, would He have delivered up His own Son, not sparing Him for us? Does not this opinion seem to be as it were contrary to that? In the one, the Son dies for us, and the Father is reconciled to us by His death; in the other, as though the Father first loved us, He Himself on our account does not spare the Son, He Himself for us delivers Him up to death. But I see that the Father loved us also before, not only before the Son died for us, but before He created the world; the apostle himself being witness, who says, “According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world.”804    Eph. i. 4 Nor was the Son delivered up for us as it were unwillingly, the Father Himself not sparing Him; for it is said also concerning Him, “Who loved me, and delivered up Himself for me.”805    Gal. ii. 20 Therefore together both the Father and the Son, and the Spirit of both, work all things equally and harmoniously; yet we are justified in the blood of Christ, and we are reconciled to God by the death of His Son. And I will explain, as I shall be able, here also, how this was done, as much as may seem sufficient.

CAPUT XI.

15. Difficultas, quomodo justificati sumus in sanguine Filii Dei. Sed quid est, justificati in sanguine ipsius? Quae vis est sanguinis hujus, obsecro, ut in eo justificentur credentes? Et quid est, reconciliati per mortem Filii ejus? Itane vero, cum irasceretur nobis Deus Pater, vidit mortem Filii sui pro nobis, et placatus est nobis? Numquid ergo Filius ejus usque adeo nobis jam placatus erat, ut pro nobis etiam dignaretur mori: Pater vero usque adeo adhuc irascebatur, ut nisi Filius pro nobis moreretur, non placaretur? Et quid est quod alio loco idem ipse doctor Gentium: Quid, inquit, ergo dicemus ad haec? Si Deus pro nobis, quis contra nos? Qui proprio Filio suo non pepercit, sed pro nobis omnibus tradidit illum; quomodo non etiam cum illo omnia nobis donavit (Id. VIII, 31, 32)? Numquid nisi jam placatus esset Pater, proprio Filio non parcens pro nobis eum traderet? Nonne videtur haec illi velut adversa esse sententia? In illa moritur pro nobis Filius, et reconciliatur nobis Pater per mortem ejus: in hac autem tanquam prior nos dilexerit Pater, ipse propter nos Filio non parcit, ipse pro nobis eum tradit ad mortem. Sed video quod et antea Pater dilexit nos, non solum antequam pro nobis Filius moreretur, sed antequam conderet mundum, ipso teste Apostolo qui dicit: Sicut elegit nos in ipso ante mundi constitutionem (Ephes. I, 4). Nec Filius Patre sibi non parcente pro nobis velut invitus est traditus, quia et de ipso dictum est, Qui me dilexit, et tradidit semetipsum pro me (Galat. II, 20). Omnia ergo simul et Pater et Filius et amborum Spiritus pariter et concorditer operantur: tamen justificati sumus in Christi sanguine, et reconciliati sumus Deo per mortem Filii ejus; et quomodo id factum sit, ut potero, etiam hic quantum satis videbitur explicabo.